Lyford Cay Foundation, Inc. continues to illustrate its commitment to supporting community initiatives that enrich learning opportunities across The Bahamas. Recently, the Foundation granted $19,000 to the Brighter Bahamas Foundation to help more Bahamians understand the importance of literacy, and the importance of reading to children starting at birth.

The Brighter Bahamas Foundation is a new promising, nonprofit with a mission of improving the lives of all Bahamians by encouraging reading from a young age and ensuring universal access to children's literature.

The organization implements its mission by partnering with healthcare providers, including hospitals and pediatricians in Nassau, to make sure that new parents receive a free book to read to their child when the child is born, and another free book at the child's first doctor's visit. Through these strategic partnerships, the Brighter Bahamas Foundation will provide literature to children and their families, and will educate the public about the connection between literacy and educational success.

"Reading aloud daily to infants and toddlers increases both early language ability and socio-emotional skills," said Jehan Unwala, executive director of Brighter Bahamas, a past All Bahamas Merit Scholar and a former Lyford Cay Foundation Scholar.

Unwala and his wife, Kristen, have always been avid readers. At the birth of their child, the interest in reading took on new life. When their child was born in Massachusetts, the hospital gave them a free children's book. And when they took their child for the first pediatrician's visit, they received another book with the doctor emphasizing the importance of reading to a child in their first six months of life.

"We knew that this was an important message that we needed to share with The Bahamas," Unwala said.

Like Unwala, the Foundation believes that literacy is key to solving many of the challenges that face our society today.

"It's clear that literacy and reading fluency are key factors that enable individuals to learn, become upwardly mobile, improve their own lives and improve the future of their children," said Maureen French, managing director of Lyford Cay Foundation.

"The fact that one of our scholars chose to return home and create a foundation focused on increasing literacy is a source of tremendous pride for us."

Unwala is grateful for Lyford Cay Foundation's grant to purchase new books for the initiative with hospitals, clinics and doctor's offices. He believes that early childhood literacy has the potential to impact Bahamian society as a whole.

"Society benefits when more people read more often," he said. "Research generally shows that readers are more likely to get good paying jobs and less likely to turn to a life of crime.

"Generally, readers are also more charitable and contribute more, culturally. To create a nation of readers, we have to start right now with our youngest generation of Bahamians. Thanks to the Lyford Cay Foundation, we're in a position to make this change happen."

Lyford Cay Foundation's grant application deadlines are February 1, April 1 and October 1 of each year.

For more information visit www.lyfordcayfoundation.org. For information on Brighter Bahamas Foundation, visit www.brighterbahamas.org.

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